Queen Movie Director Bryan Singer Has Been Fired

Bryan Singer will not finish directing the upcoming Queen movie, apparently because of strained relations with the actor playing Freddie Mercury. A new director is expected to take over the production, which is said to have about two weeks of principal photography left.

"Bryan Singer is no longer the director of Bohemian Rhapsody," Twentieth Century Fox said in a statement to the Hollywood Reporter, who is now describing the set as having descended into "chaos."

This move follows a halt in production last week, chalked up then to Singer's "unexpected unavailability." He apparently n ever returned following a Thanksgiving break.

Actor Rami Malek, who is portraying Mercury, lodged an official complaint to Fox concerning Singer's "unreliability and unprofessionalism," Variety says. Tom Hollander, who plays Queen manager Jim Beach, also apparently quit the film because of Singer's behavior, Variety adds, but eventually ended up returning to work.

Cinematographer Thomas Newton Sigel has been stepping in during Singer's absences. Deadline is reporting that production likely won't resume until next year.

Singer, whose Twitter account was recently deleted, has reportedly said that tensions on the set are causing post-traumatic stress disorder-type symptoms, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The 52-year-old had previously directed The Usual Suspects, four X-Men movies and Superman Returns, among others.

Bohemian Rhapsody is currently scheduled to hit theaters in December 2018.